I am acting as an arm's-distance surrogate father to a bright kid in
New York City who was recently placed in foster care.   I'm basically acting as a
mentor since he's a junior in high school and nobody in his foster family has
ever been to college and they have no idea how to help him through the
process.   He gets great grades and has a good shot at college
scholarships.  I graduated from university over 15 years ago so I know
the basics in and out, but things have changed, competition has
changed, demographics have changed.  That's the background and now
here's the question:  I want to find a fee-for-service person,
specialist, or company that can help me narrow the search for
colleges, who can advise on who to hire as a SAT tutor, what colleges
are most financial-aid friendly to his specific needs, etc.  Basically
with my work schedule I am too busy to pore through all the
guide-books and make a thousand phone calls trying to figure this all
out.  Since this kid's future rests on the best education he can get,
I want to find a referral for how to find the right contact who can
figure all of this out for us.  I want someone who is seasoned who
will give very specific guidance once they get the parameters of his
grades and financial situation etc.  There are hundreds of companies
that do this, but how can I find the "right one."  So here's what I
want you, my Google Answerer to find:  I need a starting point as to
how to find the five best companies (or around five) who do this
service and give personal service.  I do NOT WANT UNDER ANY
CIRCUMSTANCE some huge corporation (Like Kaplan) where it's filled
with clock-watchers who are underpaid and don't care. I DO NOT want
any referrals to some useless government website with general
information that provides me no help, or makes me work harder trying
to find answers.   I NEED a PROFESSIONAL, PERSONAL counselor whom I
can pay their handsome fee and get their undivided attention:  almost like
hiring an attorney or any expert in a field.  I need an absolute
expert in the current game of college admissions, someone who is
dedicated and will help manage this process as closely as we will.  I
CANNOT use some large anonymous firm (once again like Kaplan) or some
free social- or government-sponsered community service, where once
again everyone is underpaid and overworked.  Everytime I look for this
much-needed counseling service there are too many companies to choose
from and I can't tell the good ones from the scams.  Also, the company
need not be New York City based, but it is preferred that they have
great contacts in New York (for SAT tutors, for resources, colleges in
the area etc.).  If you can help me find the much-honored "stamp of
approval" for such a company (like a BBB, but what is the agency that
vets these types of services??) so I can narrow my search to about
five counselors or companies.  Once I can narrow it down, I can then
hire someone and move forward knowing I've got the best help to get
this kid through the process and into the best school for him.  One
caveat:  I am very wary of "rankings" by a publication or magazine: 
most of those rankings are placed by PR firms and politics.  I'm
hoping there is any reputable agency or association that can vet these
people and their services.  A rave review by Kaplan or USNews is
worthless to me and is usually contrived.
Please help!